Robin Carnahan: “I am pleased to support amendment No. 4009 to the Defense Authorization Act introduced by my colleague from New Mexico.…”

“I am pleased to support amendment No. 4009 to the Defense Authorization Act introduced by my colleague from New Mexico. This legislation is a significant step forward in the protection of our Nation from weapons of mass destruction. Since the end of the cold war, the United States has taken considerable steps to reduce the spread of these weapons. Senators Domenici and Lugar, along with former Senator Nunn, have been true visionaries in this field. Because of their efforts, we face less of a threat from the Soviet Union's nuclear legacy than we would have otherwise. The Department of Defense's Cooperative Threat Reduction Program and the related programs at the Department of Energy are truly 'defense by other means.' While these far-sighted programs have been very successful, they were not designed to address some of the terrorist threats we now face. To address these shortcomings, I introduced the Global Nuclear Security Act. This legislation attacks the problem in three ways.”